Episode 389: Giving Jar Jar Binks an Alien Voice

So we talked about the recently resurfaced news last week that Michael Jackson had been up for the part of Jar Jar Binks in The Phantom Menace, and Chris Pirillo retweeted us, starting this conversation:

Well, I got to thinking about it, and though I was aware of “fan edits” of the Star Wars movies in general, I had never watched any of them, or really dived into what that scene was all about. So I took the opportunity, and found a fan edit version that, among other things, removes Jar Jar’s and the Neimoidians’ voices and replaces them with utterly alien voices and subtitles. Have a look, and if it doesn’t start part way into the video, just jump to 11:30 and watch until 18:00.

MUCH different, right? Suddenly, I actually like the movies a lot better. And yeah, it wasn’t a super-professional polished thing, but it changed the way I think about The Phantom Menace, and I’d love to hear your thoughts, too. Did it change your opinion, too, or was that immovable?

Trivia Time!

Test your knowledge of the Star Wars universe!

Yesterday’s answer: Luke

Today’s question: Who claimed to be looking forward to completing Luke’s training?